Urban Ghost Catcher

One day in August, the sound of a car horn. The shrill sound of cicadas mingled with the honking, echoing down the street with a steady stream of people. The scorching sun baked the grey asphalt, the heat surging as if the whole street was twisting. Under the few patches of shade along the road, a few young people huddled together, smoking and waiting for the traffic lights to change. Suddenly, a young man puffing on his cigarette seems to have noticed something and lets out a soft exclamation, his eyes fixed on something at the corner of the street. Arnold, what are you looking at?" his companion asked. The young man called Arnold looked blankly at the corner for a moment before saying, "How do you think blind people cross the street? His companion was taken aback and hesitated for a moment before slowly saying, "Generally speaking, blind people are looked after when they go out or guided by a guide dog. In more modern cities there are also audio announcements of traffic lights at the side of the road. If that doesn't work, maybe they can get around a bit with sound and a cane? Arnold shook his head. What if there's no one to look after him, there's no guide dog, there's no audio announcement, and even the white stick is used to carry peanut oil?' '...You think you're funny?' His companion rolled his eyes, looked in the direction Arnold was looking, and in the next moment froze. He saw a young man in a black short-sleeved shirt standing diagonally across the road, with thick black cloth tied tightly over his eyes, blocking out all light. In his left hand he was carrying a cheap shopping bag full of vegetables, and in his right hand he was dragging a walking stick over his shoulder as if it were a cane, with a large bucket of bright yellow peanut oil shining in the sun at the end of the stick! With black ribbons wrapped around his eyes, a walking stick on his shoulder, vegetables in his left hand, and a large bucket of peanut oil in his right hand, this incredible scene immediately attracted the attention of a large crowd of people around him. Hey, look, this person is so strange. With so much cloth wrapped around his eyes, can he see the way? Can't you see the white stick in his hand? He's blind! "This is modern times. Blind people usually wear sunglasses. Who would wrap a cloth around their eyes in the heat? Wouldn't they be blinded?" "Exactly. And have you ever seen a blind person using a white cane to carry things instead of walking? Young people today really know how to have fun. The chirping of the summer cicadas couldn't drown out the whispering of the passers-by, who watched the young man with curiosity, discussed in low voices whether he was really blind or not, and looked with some anticipation at the flashing red light. Just then, a clear voice came from beside the young man. "Brother, can I help you cross the road? It was a little girl in a school uniform, about twelve or thirteen years old, with a few drops of sweat glistening on her cheeks. Her big, dark eyes were fixed on the young man, worried, pure and simple. The young man froze for a moment, then looked in the girl's direction, a smile creeping across his lips. Hm," he said, draping the bag of vegetables he was carrying over his right arm, freeing his left hand to wipe the sweat from his shirt and gently take the little girl's hand. Click! The green light came on. The young man took a step and walked with the little girl to the opposite side of the road. The little girl was very nervous, looking left and right, watching for cars on both sides of the road, her pace cautious and timid. As for the young man... he was walking very steadily. In the eyes of onlookers, the scene didn't look like a kind girl guiding a blind man across the road, but rather like an older brother guiding a child. The road wasn't wide, but in just a dozen seconds they were on the other side. The young man thanked the little girl and walked into a secluded alley without looking back. He's not blind,' Arnold said with certainty as he watched the scene unfold. He must be able to see. A young man behind Arnold rested his chin in his hand and contemplated the scene. Then, as if something had just occurred to him, he suddenly exclaimed: 'I see, he's playing a part! A loud slap landed firmly on the back of his head, and Arnold cursed and said, "You good-for-nothing, all you do is play games. Who the hell has time to play a role on the street? Don't you care about your life? After a pause of two seconds, Arnold added in a low voice, 'Besides... the cloth covering his eyes is red, which doesn't seem right either. 'Arnold, you're still talking about me...' 'Shut up. 'Oh.' As the two argued, the young man who had been silent the whole time watched the teenager's back go, his forehead slightly furrowed. 'What's wrong?' Arnold noticed his gaze. "I know him." "Know him?" "Yes." The young man nodded, "When my cousin was at primary school, I heard that a pupil at the school had an accident and had eye problems. He could only cover his eyes with black satin, and it was said that he also had mental problems...' Mental problems? Arnold was taken aback and thought back to what had just happened. "I don't think there was anything wrong." That was ten years ago, so maybe he's recovered. But at the time it seemed to have caused quite a stir, and within a few days the student had dropped out of school. I heard that he later moved to a special school for the blind. Just then another person chimed in enthusiastically: 'By the way, what exactly was the accident? It's not as if someone could go blind and develop mental problems. Could it have been a curse?' 'I don't know,' he paused, 'but... I heard it was something even more ridiculous than that. 'He was a miserable person,' Arnold sighed, 'what was his name?' 'I think it was, Lin...Lin...Seven Nights? In the evening light, Seven Nights pushed open the door. Almost immediately, the aroma of food from inside the house filled his nostrils. He sniffed, swallowed and carried his things into the house. Squeak! The old door made a shrill squeak, drowning out the sound of food sizzling in the kitchen. A middle-aged woman pushed open the kitchen door, saw Seven Nights carrying a large bag, and exclaimed in surprise as she hurried over to him. 'Seven, why did you bring so many things again? The woman rubbed her hands on her apron, hurriedly took Seven Nights' things and chattered on. "A bucket of peanut oil? You naughty boy, have you misused the government subsidy again? 'Auntie, the government handicap allowance is for living expenses and I'm using it to buy oil, so I'm making the most of it,' Seven Nights laughed. Nonsense, that money is for your university education, how can you waste it? I'm telling you, Auntie, the money I earn from working is actually enough to support the three of us, so don't waste your own money. Auntie gently wiped her hand over the oil can, her expression a little heartbroken. She muttered, 'That's a big can of oil, and it's a brand name...it must have cost a lot of money...' Before Seven Nights could say anything, Auntie suddenly realised something. 'No...why did you bring so many things? 'Oh, I met some kind people on the way and they brought it back for me,' Seven Nights said calmly. Good, good, it seems there are still a lot of good people in society...did you thank them properly? 'I did,' Seven Nights changed the subject, "Auntie, where's Jin?" 'He's on the balcony doing his homework... Oh yes, the doctor who came for the annual checkup at the mental hospital is resting in the room. You go and see the doctor, Auntie will cook and call you when it's ready. Seven Nights paused slightly, let out a small 'oh' and turned towards the bedroom. 'Hello, I'm the doctor from Yangguang Psychiatric Hospital, my surname is Li. Seeing Seven Nights push open the door and enter, the young man sitting on a small bench in the bedroom stood up and spoke softly. He wore a pair of large black-rimmed glasses and looked very sophisticated. Seven Nights raised an eyebrow in surprise, "Didn't Dr Han used to come here?" "Dr Han was promoted to Vice President last year." Dr Li smiled, a hint of envy in his eyes. Seven Nights nodded slightly and let out a 'huh'. That's right, Dr Han is quite old and highly qualified, so it's no surprise that he was promoted to Vice President. It's only natural that a younger doctor should review his case on a regular basis. Seeing Seven Nights sitting down, Dr Li cleared his throat and pulled a stack of files out of his bag. I'm sorry, I'm new here and don't know much about your case, so let me give you a brief overview,' Dr Li said apologetically. Seven Nights nodded. 'Your name is... Seven Nights?' 'Yes.' 'You are seventeen years old. 'Yes.' 'Well... the file says you went blind ten years ago and were sent to our hospital because of some problems?' 'Yes. Dr Li thought for a moment, 'Have you ever changed your name?' 'No, why do you ask? Seven Nights was taken aback and Dr Li scratched his head a little embarrassed, 'Ahem... it seems I was thinking too much. He held out his hand and pointed to the age on the medical records and then to the words 'ten years ago'. 'You see, you went blind ten years ago, when you were exactly seven years old, and your name happened to be Seven Nights, so I thought you had changed your name...' Seven Nights was silent for a long time, shaking his head: "No... I never changed my name. My parents chose the name Seven Nights before I was even born." "That's quite... a coincidence," Dr Li said halfway through his sentence, realising that it was impolite, and promptly shutting up. "It's quite a coincidence," Seven Nights said indifferently. "It really is quite a coincidence." Dr Li was a little embarrassed, but quickly changed the subject. "Well... it doesn't seem like the case file goes into much detail about the accident that blinded you and made you crazy. If you don't mind, could you tell me about it? Before Seven Nights could say anything, Dr Li quickly added, 'No offence intended. If we know more about the patient, we can treat them better. Of course, if you don't want to talk about it, I won't make you. Seven Nights sat quietly, his eyes seeming to look at Dr Li under the black band. After a moment he spoke slowly, 'There's nothing I can't talk about... It's just that you probably won't believe me, and you might even take me back to the asylum. No, no, don't think of our relationship as that of doctor and patient. This is just a normal conversation between friends, it won't go that far,' Dr Li said half-jokingly. Even if you told me that you were pulled into an alchemy furnace by the Supreme Old Man, I would believe you. Seven Nights was silent for a moment, then nodded slightly. 'When I was little, I liked astronomy. 'Hm, and then?' 'One night, I was lying on the roof of my old house, looking at the moon. 'And what did you see? The moon rabbit?' Dr Li laughed.